000: The UB Chronicles
by KahunaOldArmy
Summary: Detective Nanu, codename 000, was a low-key member of the International Police. After receiving an unexpected assignment from his superiors, he must work alongside a fellow detective to solve the mysteries of an unknown life force, and potentially uncover secrets about the organization he works for.


Malie City had one restaurant that was actually great. While there were other restaurants that were good places to eat and had some decent menus, Sushi High Roller was the only place you could go and know that you were getting the best food prepared by the best chefs using the best ingredients. Nothing was unexpected when you ordered your usual option, and if you were trying something completely new, you weren't going to be disappointed unless you just didn't have a liking of the spices and other flavors that they used. With every other restaurant in town, there was always a little bit of risk involved. Sometimes you got what you normally ordered and got something just a little different; the food was a tad more overcooked than usual, they skimped on the spices, they forgot your plate for a brief moment and gave it to you a little cooler in temperature than you would like. Other places were just downright awful. Sushi High Roller was the best that Malie City had to offer.

Anabel chose a different restaurant instead.

It wasn't her fault, Nanu supposed. She had just arrived to the city that afternoon and hadn't had a chance to learn what restaurants were good and which ones were bad. In addition to that, she had been extremely busy. And yet, when she offered to treat him to dinner, she did ask if he had a place in mind that he could recommend. At the time, saying no seemed like the best thing to do; she was a guest to the city, a tourist finally getting a break from the stressful work life she had to live every other day. It would have been wrong to take a choice away from her like that. In the end, she chose Pelipper's Roost, a dive bar that served greasy food and cheap, watered-down beer. She liked the "ambiance."

Nanu stood outside the restaurant, eyeing the old wooden sign that he had eventually learned to keep his eyes off of as he was walking through downtown. It wasn't a bad looking place on the outside. It had all of the same Johto-inspired architecture that the rest of the city had, with lots of ornate detailing in the wooden awning over the door. As he walked through the door, the inside painted a completely different picture. There were, what he assumed, grease stains on the walls, trash on the floor, and a thin layer of smoke floating near the ceiling. How this place passed health inspections was a mystery to him.

After a quick glance around the room, Nanu spotted his companion. Anabel was sitting right in the middle of the restaurant at a shabby table that was clearly the most used over the establishment's lifetime. She was peering over a menu, possibly thinking whether or not this was a huge mistake, when she briefly looked up and caught Nanu's eye. Even at a distance Nanu could tell that she was extremely sleep-deprived, with dark circles starting to form under her eyes and her cheeks looking a little pale and drawn. Her eyes gave a brief glimmer of excitement a fraction of a second later as she grinned.

"Hey!" she waved. Nanu gave a small wave back and started making his way towards the table, keeping an eye on the floor and where he placed his feet.

"Good to see you again." Anabel made an effort to stand up, but hit her knees on the table. She resumed her seat immediately. "I know it was only a few days ago, but it feels like it's been weeks since I saw you last."

"Good to see you too," said Nanu as he pulled out his chair and sat down. "You look tired. Are you not sleeping?"

Anabel shrugged. "No, not really. The days feel like they're getting longer and longer. I can't remember the last time I slept well enough to know when one ended and the other began."

"That's unfortunate," Nanu mused. "Hopefully you'll be able to relax now that you're on a real vacation."

Anabel nodded slowly, looking very relieved. A grungy looking waitress came by with two pints of beer. It must have been cold at one point; the outside of the glasses were coated in condensation from getting lukewarm. She took their orders: a club sandwich for Anabel and a burger for Nanu. Anabel took a sip of her beer, smacked her lips, and struggled to hide a grimace. Nanu didn't touch his.

"I'm really happy to get a long break." Anabel took another sip, but this time powered through. "So much has happened over the past few weeks, I can't tell you how excited I was to find out that I could take a vacation. I just hope that they don't call me up unexpectedly for some kind of investigation on the other side of the world."

"I can't remember having more than a week of time off," Nanu said as he began to spin his pint around on the table. "There was always a lot of work that InterPol had to do and never enough people to do it. If people did a job, they did it, but they didn't do it well. Has that changed?" Nanu picked his glass up to take a drink, but put it back down after Anabel took a sip and failed to hide the same grimace she made the first time.

"They've made some improvements. Lately they've taken up a campaign to encourage younger people to join so they can make up for some staffing issues. They're trying to encourage older detectives not to retire by bumping up their pension contributions. We also got bonuses. Regardless, I'm completely understaffed. I have four detectives reporting to me, and that includes Mr. Looker."

"That's more than I ever had." Nanu paused. "Mr. Looker. …'Looker.' As in a good-looking guy or 'one who looks?'

"I'm actually not sure. I've never thought to ask."

"He's been working for you for around 9 years now, hasn't he?"

"He has. It'll be 10 years sometime next summer."

"He's treating you well?"

"Oh, definitely. He's a great detective and a great person to work with. He's never let me down as far as it comes to the quality of his work."

"And not in any other way, either?"

Anabel seemed surprised by the question, but quickly recovered. "No, of course not. I trust Mr. Looker with my life. He's the only person I would trust to keep the UB situation a secret. Aside from you, of course."

Nanu smirked. "I appreciate that. Good to know that he's doing alright."

"But what about you? What have you been up to?"

"You mean over the past 8 years?"

"Well… When you put it that way, give me the highlights."

Nanu wanted to sigh in frustration, but managed to keep it inside. He hated talking about himself. He didn't necessarily like hearing other people talk about themselves either, but it was always easier to pretend to listen than it was to think of what to say next. With Anabel it wasn't that much of a problem; he found her genuinely interesting, and he was happy that she had invited him out to eat and catch up. He still would rather have had her do all of the talking, though.

"Well… when I left InterPol I came back to Alola and started working as a private investigator. I took on a few odd jobs for about a year, mostly tracking and returning kidnapped Pokemon, doing some consulting work with different police departments, what have you. Then I was asked if I would take a job as a full-time law enforcement officer here on Ula'ula Island, which I accepted. I've been working for the police force here since."

"Well, you stayed in a field you're good at, at least!" Anabel grinned. Nanu wasn't sure if it was a sarcastic quip or a sincere compliment, so he settled on giving a shrug.

"That's not all though, is there? Aren't you doing something else?"

Nanu sighed this time. He typically didn't volunteer this for a reason, but now that it was mentioned… "Yes. Shortly after joining the police force, I was made the island's kahuna..."

"I had heard that," Anabel interjected. "When I was looking into our assignment I did some research on the island and its history, where I saw your name as the kahuna. I was surprised. From the little that I've heard that sounds like a very involved role. I didn't think that would be something you would want to do."

Nanu stared at his beer. "Well, I didn't, and I don't. The way that it works is that the island's guardian deity chooses a new kahuna every time the old one dies, or is removed from his position in some form or fashion. I was just 'fortunate' to be the one that it picked. I wasn't in a position to refuse. When the guardians here speak, you typically listen."

Anabel smiled in thought. "Hmm… Good point. And when you put it that way, you were always the one that put your duty over your personal life. That's what I remember, anyway. I guess some things don't change."

The grungy waitress returned with their food. The club sandwich looked decent for a dive bar, but just underneath the toasted bread you could see a giant leaf of lettuce with the edges browning from the first stages of rot. The burger was falling apart with a soggy bun and sat in a pool of grease. Nanu stared at his burger with disgust and disappointment. He looked up to see if Anabel was having the same reaction. It was pretty clear that she was deep in thought, but he had a feeling it wasn't over the food. He could tell she was really struggling with the idea of whether or not to say something. He began to feel like he should do something to break the silence. On the other hand, he felt obligated to let her sort it out herself. Either way, he went back to staring at his food.

"Nice place," he finally said, picking up a burger with one hand and holding the other underneath in case he needed to catch something. He lifted it up and looked at it from the side; maybe they at least got the toppings right. "Why'd you pick here, again?"

"Mr. Nanu…"

Ah, there it was.

"Just Nanu, Anabel."

"Alright then. Nanu… When the three of us were investigating the UB that was spotted on Poni Island, with the trainer that helped us, I came to a realization as I was looking for a way to quarantine it."

Nanu stopped looking at his burger and put it down. "Oh?" Not much else to say. He started to look around the room instead.

"Yes. Like the last couple of times, I went out to make sure that the UB didn't go near any inhabited areas. Mr. Looker told me to head east from Seafolk Village until I reached a larger area that was more at risk of being attacked by the UB than Seafolk. He said I would need to travel through a tunnel near the shore to get to that village. I found the tunnel, and I went inside. However, it wasn't a tunnel. It was a cave of some sort, very easy to navigate, with some kind of shrine located at the end. There was no village to be found."

Nanu turned his attention to Anabel, knowing where this was going. Anabel was looking directly into his eyes, an expression on her face showing a sense of determination but also uncertainty. He frowned. "I see…"

"When I was there I was more than a little confused. I had already picked up that Mr. Looker was very familiar with the Alola region, despite his past insistence that he wasn't. I also knew that he was very concerned with my health. He was constantly asking I felt alright, or if I was exerting myself too much. I started to wonder, how could Mr. Looker, who knows so many intricate things about Alola and probably knows basic geography of the four major islands, make such a mistake as to send me to a village through a cave that didn't have an exit, but a very secure shrine instead?"

Anabel paused, presumably to see if Nanu would have anything to say. He folded his hands and continued to look at her attentively.

"And what's more… when I met up with Mr. Looker afterwards, I found out that he, the trainer helping us, and you had managed to subdue the UB by yourselves, and that the case was closed. When Mr. Looker mentioned you, I figured that he must have been working with you to locate the UB, which would have put him in a much more active role than the ones that I had given to him in the past. I thought it was unusual that he would send me so far out of the way as to keep me out of the picture, especially when he was so concerned about my health. Almost as if he were trying to protect me… or to keep me from harm..."

Anabel paused once again. Nanu could tell that she had made her point; the ball was in his court now. He remained stoic, though he wasn't expecting her to spring this on him. He managed to stall long enough.

"Mr. Nanu... Why is it that Mr. Looker was so concerned about me throughout the UB case? Why did my subordinate lie to me and take me out of the picture after I kept refusing to stand down because of his concerns? The more I want to think that it's just a detective looking after the wellbeing of his boss, the more I remember all of the other times when I've been exhausted from a mission but never received the same concerns. This was something very, very unique. What connection does my wellbeing have to the UB mission?"

Nanu knew he needed to speak now. "Ana… You're looking for an answer to a very delicate question."

Nanu paused, waiting for some kind of reaction to get him to keep talking. Instead, she looked relieved, if not elated.

"So you know something?" she asked, almost shouting. She leaned forward. "Please, Mr. Nanu, tell me what's going on."

Nanu frowned and glanced away. "I really don't believe I'm the one who should tell you that."

Anabel fell back into her chair. Her knees hit the table once again, bouncing the plates and glasses around. "If something connects me to the UBs, I believe I have a right to know, regardless of who it comes from."

Nanu focused back on her, once again serious. "That's fair, I guess. I think that you do too. But listen, Anabel: what I know shouldn't be any of your concern, even if it is about you. The UB mission is over and done with. What Looker and I did to keep you away from the UB that final time… to keep you away from harm, as you put it… we did in secrecy for a reason. Perhaps that was wrong of us. It _was_ wrong of us, actually. But let me tell you this: there are some things that are better left not knowing when it comes to something that won't happen again."

Nanu stopped speaking so Anabel could gather her thoughts. His response wasn't a good one by any means. Of course she had the right to know why he and Looker behaved so secretively. If he were in her shoes he would have insisted his friend kept talking. He expected her to get frustrated, to throw her hands up in the air or slam them on the table in front of them, anything to startle him or give her an answer she would want to hear.

Instead, Anabel sat quiet, and eventually looked away. Then it made sense. A good InterPol detective never questioned their superiors; the answer you got from them was the answer you get.

"Is that all?" Nanu asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, I suppose."

He was right. No questions, ever.

Anabel propped her elbows on the table, folded her hands, and laid her head in them. Nanu kept his eye on her. After a while he felt the need to speak again.

"Listen, Ana. I really do mean what I just said. Your time spent in the International Police is going to be filled with moments like these. Your superiors are going to assign you to cases and put you in situations after telling you only what they want you to know while they keep the rest of the information to themselves. That information they keep from you, their ulterior motives, if they have any… more often than not it's better for you to not know what that information is. The more you start trying to dig up answers to any questions you might have, like you're doing now, the more likely you are to get hurt."

Anabel picked her head back up and looked at Nanu. "Are you sharing this from experience, Mr. Nanu?"

"…Yes. You could say that."

"Does it have to do with why you left?"

Nanu didn't answer right away. He sat back in his chair and lowered his head, but he could feel Anabel's gaze fixed on him.

"Why _did_ you leave, Mr. Nanu? 26 years as a detective, then you finally get a promotion, and then you just… leave." Anabel closed her eyes once more. "Then again, you never gave me a real answer back then, so I suppose you wouldn't feel like giving me an answer now, would you?"

Nanu smirked. "That's a good guess." He picked his head back up. "Yes, I did leave after… finding some things out, so to say. I wasn't happy with what I learned." He paused; Anabel seemed to be relaxing a little bit. "That's why I'm telling you to keep your nose out of things. For now, anyway. You're young, and you're eager. You should focus all of that on doing a job well done. Once you get a little older you can think about turning into a cynical old jackass like me, heh."

Anabel chuckled lightly, which made Nanu grin. "But that's just one of your many redeeming qualities!" She giggled. She picked her beer up, made a toasting motion to Nanu, and took a swig. Nanu reciprocated, taking his first drink of beer since he arrived. He coughed; it really was terrible.

"Are you happy, Mr. Nanu?"

Nanu coughed again, this time to buy him time from the unexpected question. "Happy? I guess you could say that. I'm certainly busy. I live alone, but for a reason, and it's not so bad. I have a bunch of stray Meowth that I take care of, and they keep me company. I keep busy with the kahuna business as it is very involved, as you mentioned, whether I like it or not. So yeah, I would say that I'm happy."

Anabel smiled. "That's good. I'm glad." She placed her hand on the table towards him. "I'm really glad I got to see you."

Nanu smiled and gave Anabel's hand a quick pat. "It's good to see you too."

The two sat back and gave another look at their food. Anabel picked up her sandwich, took a bite, and then grimaced and gagged almost immediately. Nanu didn't even try his burger.

"Anabel," he said, offering her a napkin. "Would you, please, let me treat you to sushi?"

Anabel grinned through the gagging. "Please! Lead the way."

* * *

Nanu got home around 4 hours later. It was a pleasant, but exhausting evening. He was worn out, but happy, and now he was able to spend some time alone.

Well, not quite alone. The minute he opened his front door, several Meowth scampered from throughout the front room to greet their new guest. He quickly forced his way inside and closed the door, ignoring the loud chatter coming from his ankles.

He left the restaurant with a box of leftovers, which he tossed a few scraps of on the floor. It was like a furry stampede on the floor as the cat Pokémon raced to get the tasty treats, which gave him a chance to walk to the refrigerator unbothered. He put the food away and made his way over to his sleeper sofa, pulling a cigarette and lighter out of his shirt pocket. He sat down, lit the cigarette, and took a puff.

As the smoke filled his lungs and the nicotine began to enter his bloodstream, he started thinking back to earlier in the evening and the "advice" that he had given Anabel. He felt like he had done the right thing, as he had meant what he said about keeping her nose clean and not looking for answers that would do more harm than good. Still, he thought back to how he had been in her shoes once before and how desperately he wanted answers to the questions he had. The difference between her and him was that he didn't have a superior to tell him to back off once they knew what he was up to, and he wasn't capable of settling on not finding answers himself.

He put out the cigarette prematurely and pulled out the bed of his sofa. A few Meowth attempted to jump up onto the bed, but were promptly shooed away. He threw himself onto the bed, the buzz from the cigarette still keeping his eyes open, the questions about "the right thing" still going through his mind. He put himself in Anabel's shoes once again, and started thinking back to his time as a detective and the case he had that made him the way he was now.


End file.
